EconTalk | 7 August 2019 | 1h 06m | Listen Later | iTunes
Interview with Andy Matuschak about his essay Why Books Don’t Work. Matuschak argues that most books rely on transmissionism, the idea that an author can share an idea in print and the reader will absorb it. And yet after reading a non-fiction book, most readers will struggle to remember any of the ideas in the book. Matuschak argues for a different approach to transmitting ideas via the web including different ways that authors or teachers can test for understanding that will increase the chances of retention and mastery of complex ideas.

Rationally Speaking | 21 January 2019 | 0h 47m | Listen Later | iTunes
Discussion testing the case for charter schools with Neerav Kingsland, who helped rebuild New Orleans’ public school system after Hurricane Katrina, converting it into America’s first nearly-100% charter school system. Includes responses to the main arguments against charter schools and what is known about how parents choose schools for their children.

Y Combinator | 19 June 2019 | 0h 42m | Listen Later | iTunes
Interview with Jeremy Rossman, the co-founder of Make School, a college for computer science headquartered in San Francisco. Make School students don’t pay until they have a job after graduation. Insights on education, income sharing agreements and aligning the incentives for universities and students.

Revisionist History | 20 June 2019 | 0h 38m | Listen Later | iTunes
The fourth season of Revisionist History starts with Malcolm Gladwell questioning the merits of examinations that deliberately rush the student. It turns out that ranking by ability is a function of how much thinking is rushed.

Freakonomics Radio | 9 May 2019 | 0h 48m | Listen Later | iTunes
The cost of a university has skyrocketed, creating a debt burden that’s a drag on the economy. A possible solution is to shift the risk of debt away from students and onto investors looking for a cut of the graduates’ earning power. Explores university education, how to fund it, and politics more generally with Mitch Daniels, the President of Purdue University.